How the Spring came to love the Storm
by Charpie
Summary: Theirs was a bond that took time to grow. Gokudera and Haru through the ages. Eventually 5986.
1. Chapter 1: Trouble Maker

Author's notes: This starts off a collection of mini-ficlics focused around Gokudera and Haru, spanning from the time they start high school (and hence post Time-Skip) to well…the end : D Each chapter will be focused on a theme that I've found or came up with myself. If anyone has any suggestions for themes, I'd be very open to hearing them.

Enjoy.

**Trouble maker**** – 1****st**** Year of High School (April)**

Haru was nothing short of ecstatic when she found out that the whole family (minus a few members) would all be going to the same high school. But as soon as she found out that they would be in separate classes her heart dropped. Tsuna, Kyoko, and Yamamoto were all in the same class while she was with-

"Che- I'm with the stupid woman."

Him.

"Well Haru doesn't want to be in a class with an outlaw!" She snapped back turning to face him.

"Don't start now," Tsuna groaned from behind. It didn't help that Yamamoto was grinning like an idiot next to Gokudera, which only made the latter's mood worse, causing him to call her more names and for her to yell at him more.

And that was how her high school debut started. While her best friend, future husband, and Yamamoto were three classrooms away, she was stuck in the row adjacent to his, two seats behind and a whole world away.

Through the beginning of the semester she had come to realize just how much of an outlaw Gokudera really was. He usually came to class late, hardly ever paid attention (opting to sleep or doodle instead), fought with all the teachers, and left when he felt like it. And when she confronted him for doing all that stuff and more, he would naturally argue back and call her names, making the situation all the more intense.

Haru wondered why she tried so hard, especially since he was pretty much impossible. She wouldn't have to deal with all of this if she were with Kyoko and Tsuna, or even placed with just Yamamoto. The best conclusion that she could come up with was that it was ultimately for the sake of her beloved Tsuna, who deserved family members that at least cared about school.

But eventually she came to realize that just as it wasn't easy for her to be so close yet so far away, that it wasn't easy for him either. Being separated from Tsuna and the others, who were his closest friends, or family as Reborn put it, was incredibly difficult for him. Even if they were only three rooms down, it honestly felt like a world away.

And that was something that they could at least agree on.


	2. Chapter 2: Quiz

**Disclaimer: **Forgot to mention this in the last chapter. None of the characters belong to me, they are all the creations of Akira Amano.

**Author's Notes: **And here's the next chapter. For the most part each chapter will be around this length (which is why I call them ficlets). There will be several that are longer though.

Reviews are very much welcome. ^_^

**Quiz**** – 1****st**** Year of High School (July)**

"Here," she said, handing him a group of papers after he finally showed up for class during lunch.

"What the hell is this?" he asked, flipping through all the sheets.

"It's the notes you've missed over the pass few days. There's a quiz during first period tomorrow."

"Che, like I need to study for a stupid quiz."

She smirked. "Hmph. As high and mighty as you think you are, I doubt even an outlaw like you could ace a test without at least knowing what it's covering. It's Japanese History, not math." There was a large, obvious hint of triumph in her voice.

Gokudera tried to look unimpressed. "I'm not stupid like you are."

"Hahi! Fine I'll take them back!" She went to grab the stack but he pulled it away. "If you don't want them, just give them back!"

He eyed her suspiciously. "Why the hell are you giving this to me in the first place? Don't you always yell at me for coming in late anyways?"

She sighed and towards his arms, where bandages could be seen at the end of his sleeves. "It's not like you were skipping on purpose this time," she said quietly.

He quickly noticed what she was looking at and fixed his sleeves. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Don't lie," she snapped. "Yamamoto-san told me about it." That it was Gokudera who protected Tsuna the other night during a fight. It was the reason why he was out for so many days she reminded herself. Haru knew that the mafia the boys were involved with was very dangerous. She had seen all of that first hand and it made her worry about them all the time. And as badly as she wanted to, there was very little that she could do to help them directly, except maybe prevent Gokudera from failing a quiz or two.

Gokudera sat stiff for a moment and then quickly mumbled, "Whatever." He took the papers, stuffing them in his bag. He then proceeded to turn back around in his seat, ending the rest of that conversation.

Haru smiled at her small victory, watching his back with soft eyes. Even if he was an outlaw and a pain in the ass, she was relieved that he was okay over all. "If you have any questions you can call me." She doubted he heard her, and knew that even if he did he wouldn't call her, but it never hurt to offer.

And since she wasn't expecting it, she was very surprised when she got a text message from him that night complaining that her notes were practically useless because he couldn't read her "stupid" handwriting. She was about to snap at him when she realized something.

At least he looked at them.


	3. Chapter 3: Glasses

Disclaimer: I don't own the characters of KHR, it all belongs to Akira Amano.

Arthur's Notes: This one was a little harder for me to write because I find Gokudera's point of view much more difficult than Haru's. I hope I did him justice!

Major shout out to my brand spanken new Beta: Princess one99five! BTW, I found her using 's Beta Reader feature, so if any of you are searching for a Beta (and are unsure about it), I highly recommend using this feature!

**Glasses – 1****st**** year of High School (October)**

"I'm surprised to see you here. I didn't think you'd even know where the library is." A chill ran down Gokudera's spine at the sound of her voice. What he really wanted was to be alone and she was the last person he wanted interrupting him. He chose to ignore her and continue reading, doing his best to pretend the sight of her bag dropping onto the table was a mere illusion. Unfortunately, however, she was ignoring his signals for her to clear off.

Since subtlety wasn't working, he decided to try a more substantial approach. "Go away."

Haru glared at him. "You're so rude. What are you doing here anyway?"

_Can't she take a hint? _Gokudera fumed. He let his glasses fall down the bridge of his nose so their eyes could directly meet. "None of your business."

Haru held his gaze before rolling her eyes over to the books he had laid out in front of him, studying each title. Annoyed, he watched impatiently as she processed everything and then turned to him with surprise. "Hahi! This is for Tsuna-san, isn't it? He's already thinking about building the base."

Gokudera found himself nodding, taken aback by how quickly she pieced the puzzle together. "He was talking about it the other day. He wants to be prepared, just in case."

Haru opened a book and flipped through it, stopping at a few of the pictures, her thoughts obviously on the Tenth. "And you're doing research for him?"

"As his right hand man, I have to be ready for any inquiries!" he said, pride pouring like tea from a teapot from his tone of voice.

Haru bit her lip and didn't say anything for a moment, choosing instead to flip through a few of the other books instead. Then she closed the last one and left. Not wanting to even think about what she was up to, Gokudera turned back to his own reading and note taking.

Not less than five minutes later, she returned with an armful of books which she set down on his table and took a seat across from him.

"I don't need your help," he immediately snorted.

Haru took out a notebook and opened the topmost volume. "Who said anything about helping you?" she said obnoxiously. "This is for Tsuna-san."

_Do you even know what to look for? _Gokudera thought, too irritated to say it aloud. What he really wanted was for her to leave, but he recognized the determined look on her face. Besides, he reasoned with himself as he went back to his own reading, as long as it was for the Tenth, he could allow her to be there. Well, as long as she was quiet.

A moment later he glanced up at her, watching as she engrossed herself in reading. If it was a few years back, he wouldn't have had the patience to let her stay much less "help". In the beginning, he found her unbearable. She was so loud and hyper, always saying "hahi" to every damn thing. It amazed him how his boss could endure it all, especially since she was so clingy. Truthfully, the only thing he found remotely tolerable about her was her devotion to the Tenth and in his book it was basis for a tolerance.

It was that small ounce of tolerance that allowed him to survive being in the same classroom with her, especially with her constant nagging. But it was also in that classroom that he learned that underneath the layer of loud hyper-activity was an even thicker layer of intelligence, even more so than he initially thought. Who knew, she might actually find something worth noting.

Her love and dedication to the boss were strong, almost at the same level as his. Gokudera knew that she would do everything within her power to help him, which was why he could put some trust into the work that she was doing.

And at that moment, her presence wasn't so bothersome.

P.S. I made a stupid mistake somewhere above. Free fanart to the first person who can find it!


	4. Chapter 4: Afro

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of KHR, the credit goes to Akira Amano.

Big thanks to my Beta: Princess one99five.

After a month long hiatus (due to my naturally slow writing) I now present you with the fourth chapter and as an extra bonus, it's about three times longer than the previous ones. That's it for now, but please read my notes at the end of the chapter.

oOoOo

**Afro- 1****st****Year of High School (January)**

She was running late, not that they would have minded but she really hated making them wait. Thankfully, everyone was still at the entrance to the school, preparing to leave.

"Sorry for making you wait," Haru huffed as she made it to her locker.

"You took too long, woman," Gokudera said snippily from a corner where he was smoking a cigarette, glaring at the large garment bag that was in her arms. "How long does it take you to get some stupid clothes?"

"HAHI! They are not stupid!" Haru snapped right back. "They're costumes that I need to mend for the drama club!"

"It's really no problem," Tsuna skillfully intervened before Gokudera could respond, wrapping his scarf tightly around his neck. Haru beamed at his kindness, while Gokudera let out a "che".

"Will you need help with any of it?" Kyoko asked her.

"I should be fine. This is just so I can catch up with all the extra projects. I really lucked out, since clubs were cancelled this afternoon." And it was all due to the weather. It was easily the coldest week of the winter season, with a heavy snowstorm threatening to fall at any given moment. Even sport clubs were cancelled which allowed Yamamoto and Sasagawa to join them on the walk home.

This was actually the first time they had walked home together in a long time, Haru thought as she walked alongside Kyoko. Usually Haru was busy with her club as was Kyoko and some of the boys, so a chance for all of them to be together after school was few and far in between. But lately the girls had been seeing even less of them. The boys had been disappearing after school and on the weekends. While they were eating lunch the other day, Kyoko had confided in Haru that her brother wouldn't come home till late in the evening.

Obviously something was up, and the girls knew it had something to do with the mafia but they had made a promise not to press the boys about anything they weren't willing to talk about. Besides, they knew that when it mattered, Tsuna would tell them everything that they needed to know. So for now, Haru would enjoy the time that they could spend together, care free.

"TSUNA-NII!"

Well almost care free.

Everyone turned towards the cry that had been addressed to Tsuna and saw a frantic Fuuta running towards them with I-Pin close behind. Tsuna immediately ran towards them, his expression matching the flushed ranker's. They could all see that he had ran the entire way, evidenced by his flushed face and heavy breathing.

"Fuuta!" Tsuna panicked. "What happened? Are you okay?"

I-Pin answered for the winded Fuuta. "Lambo's missing!"

"Missing?"

Fuuta nodded, finally able to catch his breath. "He wasn't in his classroom and I couldn't find him anywhere at the school. We looked everywhere!"

Haru caught the strained look that passed between Tsuna and Gokudera, which quickly traveled to Yamamoto and then Ryohei. Her heart raced as she wondered what it could possibly mean.

"We need to find him!" she found herself saying, her own fear and panic rising.

"He could get really sick if we don't find him in soon," Kyoko chipped in, face painted with worry. "It's too cold for him to be outside!"

"He could have gone home," Yamamoto calmly suggested without appearing convinced himself.

"Or the idiot might have wandered off and gotten lost, chasing after something stupid," Gokudera voiced his opinion.

Ryohei nodded. "Un. He's probably just hiding."

Hearing the simple suggestions seemed to calm Tsuna down reasonably. He stood up, and looked into everyone's faces. "We'll split up and search around town. If we don't find him in two hours, let's meet back at my house. Don't worry, we'll find him," he added reassuringly to Haru and Kyoko with a smile.

Agreeing to the plan, everyone split up into pairs and went in different directions. Haru wasn't sure how but she somehow ended up with Gokudera, moving towards the elementary school where Lambo and I-Pin attended.

Almost an hour had passed and there was still no luck in finding Lambo. The two of them had searched the entire school and the surrounding neighbourhood. Surprisingly, no one had seen cow-printed hide or hair of the little guy. It wasn't looking good.

Haru paused to lean against a bench to catch her breath. The sky was thick with a layer of dark gray clouds. To Haru it was like a bad omen or a setting for a horrible dream, telling her that they would never find Lambo safe and sound.

She looked over towards Gokudera, who was also briefly resting, choosing to stand not far from her. He had been searching just as hard as she had, all the while with a grim expression. It wasn't easy searching with him. During the several instances when they asked someone for information, she had to snap at him for scaring their wits away with his outlaw glare or rough comments.

Yet as much as he tried to restrain it, Haru could tell that he was also worried about Lambo. She found it a little odd, especially since Gokudera never seemed to think much of the little kid. Perhaps it was for the sake of Tsuna-san or maybe he really did care. But it couldn't matter to her then because she wasn't in the mood to think too deeply about it. Lambo came first.

Her eyes briefly met with his and with a nod, both came to a silent agreement to continue. Gokudera led the way to a children's park that was near where they had been standing, while Haru stayed behind a little to search the surrounding area, all the while with both calling out his name.

"Ahou-ushi!"

"Lambo-kun!"

She was so preoccupied that she didn't notice Gokudera suddenly pause at the foot of a slide.

"LAMBO-KUN!" Haru called louder.

"Oi! Shut up!"

Haru whipped around and glared at him. She was getting tired of his attitude. "Hahi! Don't tell me to-"

"_Shut up_ and listen!" he hissed again, something resembling urgency echoing in his tone.

Haru did as she was told and listened in. Since they were the only ones in the immediate area, everyone else seeking shelter from the upcoming storm, there was nothing to interfere with the silence and her hearing. Haru moved a little closer and brought her hands up to her ears to hear what he was trying to hear. As for Gokudera, he stood absolutely still and closed his eyes in order to concentrate. She vaguely remembered hearing from Yamamoto about how good all of Gokudera's senses were when compared to everyone else. After a couple of seconds of silence, his eyes shot open and he ran towards one of the jungle gyms shaped like a giant penguin.

She immediately followed him, praying that they had finally found him. Haru nearly cried out in joy when Gokudera reached into one of the openings in the penguin and pulled out the little eight-year-old by the back of his coat collar, who was struggling at being handled so roughly.

"What the fuck were you doing?!" Gokudera yelled, shaking him a little. "Do you have any idea what the hell you've put us through, idiot?!"

"Gokudera, stop!" Haru cried, making her way over to them.

"LEAVE ME ALONE!" Lambo screamed, wrestling himself out of Gokudera's grip and running back inside his hiding place.

"I swear I'm going to kill him someday," Gokudera grumbled as he ran a hand through his hair. All of his worry had instantly been replaced with irritation and, Haru thought, something resembling relief.

"If you weren't such a brute, he wouldn't have done that!" Haru answered, irritated. After giving him a visual reproof to reinforce what she had said, she leaned in closer to him so that he could hear her whisper. "Call Tsuna-san and the others to let him know that we found him. I'll try and get him to come out."

Gokudera scowled at the fact that he was being told what to do by someone other than his boss but somehow agreed, if begrudgingly, and stepped to the side, taking out his cell phone and grumbling. Haru rolled her eyes at him and turned back to Lambo. The Thunder Guardian was huddled up inside the crevice, knees to his chin with his cow printed muffler wrapped loosely around his neck and coat unbuttoned at the top. His cheeks were flushed red from the cold and it was obvious that he had been crying, with another fit of tears on the way thanks to Gokudera's manhandling. However, from what she could see, aside from being emotionally upset and cold, Lambo appeared to be physically okay and that in itself was a huge relief to her.

Haru knelt down so that she was face to face with him. "Lambo-kun," she said softly, "tell Haru what happened? Why did you run away after school?" Lambo looked up at her with tear filled eyes and a runny nose and then quickly looked down at the ground again.

Haru tried again. "What happened, Lambo-kun? Please tell me." He shook his head violently and hugged his knees tighter. Haru lightly sighed through her nose. What had happened to him?

A light gust of wind blew over them, shocking Haru with a shiver and no doubtedly doing the same to Lambo. It was even colder than before and Haru knew that they had to get him out of the nasty weather soon. Years of experience inspired her with a sure fire way of getting him out of there peacefully.

"Lambo-kun, it's really cold outside. Do you want to go get some hot chocolate?"

Taking in a huge sniff, Lambo nodded. "Uh-huh."

She offered her hand for him to take and lead him out of the giant penguin and walked him over to where Gokudera was waiting. He raised an eyebrow but said nothing, allowing Haru to safely think that she had won this round. She explained to him that they were going to get hot chocolate and that he was welcome to come if he promised to be civil to Lambo. Gokudera's answer was a muttered "Whatever" and he proceeded to follow them to the nearest café.

Afterwards, on their way back to Tsuna's house, Haru somehow managed to convince Lambo to explain what had happened. It turned out that the young bomber's stunt had been the result of teasing from the bullies in his class.

"They kept making fun of me and saying that Maman isn't my mom and that my real family threw me away because I'm weird," a tearful Lambo explained. Haru's heart went out to him and gave his hand a light squeeze of comfort. But in all honesty, it wasn't surprising. With his distinct European features and unique style, Lambo completely stood out from his Japanese classmates.

"Don't listen to them."

Haru looked at Gokudera in surprise, seeing that he was looking down at Lambo. "Don't listen to anything that they say. Vongola is your real family now, and that's all that matters." His sudden statement took her completely aback, and she was surprised by how moved she was.

"Gokudera," she whispered. Her face brightened up as she looked down at Lambo.

"Everyone loves you, Lambo," she chipped in, not wanting to be outdone. "So don't worry about what those bullies say." Lambo took a giant sniff and nodded, looking comforted by what they were saying.

"They're all assholes anyway," Gokudera added. "We'll show them why they shouldn't mess with Vongola." The two guardians glanced at each other and Haru was truly surprised by what followed. After a brief moment, both of them broke out into smiles, until Gokudera ruffled Lambo's hair causing the later to squirm under his grasp.

_They're pretty close after all_, she thought, laughing to herself.

Gokudera passed her a huffy glance. "What the hell are you giggling about?"

Haru's smile grew bigger from getting caught. "Nothing," she replied, knowing full well that if she challenged him about it, he would only deny it and ruin the moment. Besides, it was more fun if she kept her little discovery to herself for now. She would challenge him on it later.

She watched silently as Lambo took hold of Gokudera's hand. It was kind of cute watching the two of them interact, like watching two brothers. Their bond was very strong and ran deeper than Haru had ever thought was possible and was too complicated for her to figure out. It was probably like this between Gokudera and the other guardians as well. And in the back of her head she wondered if it would ever be true for the two of them.

oOoOo

So, does anyone want some wine to go along with all that cheesiness?

Goodness this story is moving slowly, but in all honesty that's how I feel it should be done. When it comes to Gokudera and Haru, I feel that there are certain hurdles that should be overcome in order for them to get closer to each other, which is what each of these beginning chapters is trying to accomplish.

Lambo, in my opinion, is more of a uniting factor than a hurdle. He's something that Haru and Gokudera have in common. For Haru, I think she tends to dote on Lambo more than I-Pin and is associated with him more (many times, she's seen holding him or talking to him, a lot more than Kyoko anyways). As stated by Reborn during the ring battles, Thunder and Storm are brothers. Despite how much he taunts Lambo, we all know that deep down Gokudera has an incredible soft spot for the little guy (anyone remember the filler episode during the ring battle?)

In this chapter, the "family" issue came up, which in my mind, is a sensitive subject to Gokudera. This also allowed a chance for Haru to see how much he really cares about Lambo, and lets face it, Haru won't really start approving of someone unless they show that they care about kids.

Meh, that's enough of my GokuHaru theory for now.

Reviews, as always, are most appreciated.


	5. Chapter 5: Blood

Aaaaaaand another month goes by until the next chapter. I'd give you a ton of excuses but their not worth the wasted breath to say them. So here's the next chapter for you to enjoy and unfortunately, it's a short one. My notes are at the end of the chapter.

One big thanks to my Beta Reader: Princess_one99five and a huge thanks to everyone who's read the story and those who have reviewed it.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

**Blood- Second Year of High School (June)**

It was an unspoken rule between all that no matter how bad things got, they would make sure the girls would always remain safe.

Today, Gokudera broke that rule.

He was on his way to the local bookstore to purchase his favorite magazine when he ran into Haru at the shopping district. It was her monthly "Haru Appreciation Day" and she was on her way to the cake shop to pick out cakes for Kyoko and herself. As soon as she saw him, she waved and ran up to him, her face full of cheer and excitement. He remained somewhat indifferent; for once not overly annoyed that she was there.

"Where are you going?" she asked when she caught up to him.

"Where does it look like?"

By the time he noticed that something wasn't right, it was too late. Before he could react, the entire shopping center became eerily quiet as if time stood still. A bright yellow beam shot between them and into the building that they were in front of. Gokudera barely had time to register what was going on before the wall exploded, sending the two of them flying.

He landed hard, knocking all the wind out of his system. It took him a moment to take a deep enough breath to move but it was horribly painful. He felt he might have broken a rib or two. Managing to sit himself up, he was able to look around. There was debris everywhere but where was the enemy?

Where was Haru?

A surge of energy rushed through his body as Gokudera forced himself to stand up and search for her. Almost by intuition he swung around and saw her body crumpled up several feet away.

He felt something squeeze him internally as he ran over to her. "Ha-Haru!"

There was no response.

And even as he kneeled next to her, calling out her name, there was still nothing. He was almost afraid to touch her, like she would crumble as soon as he laid his fingers on her scratched back. He forced himself to get over it and managed to gently turn her over and see that she was much the worse for wear. There were scratches and cuts everywhere, including two really bad ones on Haru's forehead and forearm, which was most likely broken. Her clothes were becoming incarnadine from the blood that escaped from her wounds.

_Is she still breathing? Who did this? Will she be okay? What will the Tenth say?_

The thoughts raced through his head as Gokudera just sat there in shock. He didn't even notice Yamamoto run up to him, much less hear any of the questions that he was asking.

He couldn't let this go. He had to find the person who was responsible for this. Yamamoto would make sure she would be okay, since he obviously couldn't be trusted with protecting her. Gokudera would make them suffer. No one got away with hurting the family.

"Oi, Gokudera!" Yamamoto called out, as he pressed a cloth to Haru's forehead.

"Take care of her," the Storm Guardian finally replied, his ring glowing dangerously. He would repay whoever did this to her one thousand times over and over again.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Can I fangasim just a little and say that pissed Gokudera is sexy as all hell! That ends my little bit of fangirling XD

On a more serious note, the story is taking a little bit more of a turn. My timeline shifted several times until it finally stopped here. I actually had a couple of more innocent chapters planned but threw them out the window because it just wasn't going to work with what I wanted to accomplish. Next chapter will be more interesting…hopefully 3


	6. Chapter 6: Smile

**Disclaimer: **I don't own KHR, it all belongs to Akira Amano.

**Author's Note: **I'm not going to mention how long its been since I've updated but I will mention that this is one of those long chapters! Also there's a nice little surprise at the end~

As always, comments and reviews are most welcomed and appreciated.

**Smile – Second Year of High School (June)**

"You should have been there with the rest of us. It would have been good for you to see her," Yamamoto told him.

Gokudera shook his head. "She doesn't need to see the person who almost killed her."

"You're being way too hard on yourself," Yamamoto sighed as he threw his baseball up in the air and caught it. "Haru didn't die. Dr. Shamal even said that she'll make a full recovery."

_No thanks to me_, Gokudera thought remorsefully. It had been four days since he and Haru were ambushed at the shopping district. As soon as Yamamoto had shown up, Gokudera had gone after the assailant and while he was able to catch the bastard who attacked them, it still didn't bring any retribution for what had happened to Haru. She was hurt pretty badly and it was only yesterday that she had awakened from her coma.

The others had gone immediately after school for a visit once they found out, except for him. He didn't deserve to see her. He had failed in his duty to protect the Family. He certainly didn't deserve to call himself the Tenth's Right Hand Man anymore.

His boss handed him a rice ball. "Eat this. You look like you haven't been eating, much less slept in days."

"I'm not worthy of your kindness. Thank you, Tenth." Gokudera accepted but didn't really touch it. He knew he looked like shit.

"You can't go on like this," the Tenth said. "It wasn't your fault."

"You should go see her," Yamamoto chimed in. "It might help you."

"Don't tell me what to do!" Gokudera snapped, prepairing to throw the riceball at the baseball idiot.

"Gokudera-kun!"

He immediately stopped in mid throw. Now he had done it the Tenth's tone sounded so harsh. Gokudera immediately positioned himself in front of the Tenth, bowing up and down profusely.

"My deepest apologies! I didn't mean to waste to the food that you so graciously had given me-"

"Gokudera-kun."

He looked up at the Tenth. His boss' expression wasn't angry or even irritated but instead it was filled with pure concern.

His boss spoke to him. "Go visit her."

oOoOo

The good thing was that she was okay. Battered and bruised, but overall alive and recovering just like they had told him.

So if she was alright in the end, why was he so hesitant to enter her hospital room?

Was it because he felt guilty? It wasn't like he meant for any of it to happen. It was an ambush after all. As much as he hated hearing it from Yamamoto, no one was blaming him for any of it; even the Tenth told him so many times. That should have been enough to convince him otherwise.

But still…he failed in his duty to look out for the family.

Gokudera stared at the door to her room, knowing that he had to open it but failing to do so. Instead he reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigarette. Even though the hospital rules forbade him from lighting it, he was oddly comforted by just letting it dangle from the edge of his mouth.

Taking a fake drag, he let out his breath slowly. _Just open it_, he told himself, gripping the cold knob, he turned it with some hesitation and pushed the creaky door to her room open.

She was sitting upright, flipping through a magazine when he entered. Her eyes lit up, but softened to a calmer expression when she realized it was him.

"Gokudera-san," she said with a little bit of surprise in her voice.

"Ah," he replied with a light gesture.

He was surprised to see that she was alone, especially since he knew that everyone else would come and visit her constantly. This was quite evident from the fresh basket of flowers from Sasagawa and Kurokawa on the stand alongside a couple of homemade cards from the brats. He knew the Tenth and the Baseball Freak had stopped by earlier in the day, and judging from the smell of rotting food at the window, his sister had been by as well.

She looked much better than how she was a few days ago. Her broken arm was encased in a cast, placed securely in a sling, and the large cut on her forehead was hidden behind a bandage that was hidden by her bangs. The only things that hadn't improved were the bruises that were scattered all over her body. Yet even with her body battered and covered in bruises, she looked cheerful.

"There's no smoking in the hospital," she pointed to the cigarette still between his lips.

He ripped the cigarette from his mouth and stuck it in his pocket. "Like it matters. It wasn't lit anyways."

Haru rolled her eyes and went back to her magazine. "I wasn't expecting you to visit since you didn't come with everyone else yesterday. I'm a little surprised."

"Ah. well…I was busy yesterday," he lied.

"Oh. Well, how's class? Or have you been skipping again?"

_Even while injured, she still loves to nag!_ Gokudera fumed. He bit his tongue and brought out a stack of papers from his bag. "No…I've been attending…I actually brought you some notes from class. Figured you didn't want to fall behind."

Haru blinked. "I didn't think you took notes."

Gokudera almost crumpled up the papers out of spite. He was expecting her to sound a little more grateful or even a little surprised, but this was Haru that he was talking about. "Look, do you want them or not?" he asked in frustration.

Haru took them with a teasing look. "These will be useful. Kyoko-chan said she'll help me study, especially since midterms are coming up in a few weeks. It'll be interesting, since I'll have to write with my other hand, but I've been practicing all day and have gotten pretty good at it."

Gokudera frowned. She wouldn't have had to worry about that if her arm wasn't broken. And her arm wouldn't have been broken if he wasn't such a failure.

Haru briefly flipped through the notes. "Your handwriting is horrible," she playfully commented but he didn't say anything back.

She looked up at him. "Gokudera-san? Is everything okay?"

He ran his hand through his hair, looking away. "Look, I'm really sorry."

"Hahi? For your handwriting? I was only joking."

"NO! Not that. I'm sorry for putting you here! I mean…I shouldn't have let you get hurt like this." He ran his fingers into his hair, stopping halfway and tugging. Then he yanked them away. "It's all my fault!"

"But it wasn't. It was a surprise attack- how could you have known?"

"That's not the point!" Gokudera said, almost snapping. "I should be ready for anything, but I failed, and you nearly got killed."

"But Gokudera-san-"

"You don't understand! I can't let Family get killed!" he yelled.

She recoiled at his outburst, but recovered. "Family? You think I'm Family?"

Gokudera scoffed, "Of course you're Family." _Why else would I put up with you?_

He really didn't notice that Haru sat there, stunned by what he had said. It wasn't until he saw the tears welling in her eyes that he really noticed. "Wait- shit, you're crying. Look, sorry. I didn't mean to yell."

Haru shook her head and wiped the threatening tears from her eyes. "No, that's not it."

"Then why are you crying?"

"Thank you, Gokudera-san."

He was thoroughly confused. "I don't get it. For what?"

She looked him in the eye. "Haru never realized that you considered her as Family. It makes me really happy to learn that, and it means a lot to me." By then, a full smile had broken out on her face.

Upon seeing her smile Gokudera's cheeks started to heat up. He wasn't expecting her to be so happy from hearing him say that. It really threw him off. He quickly turned away, embarrassed. "Umm, well…the Tenth accepted you first, so it's only right..." He hoped to God that he wasn't turning red. Gokudera Hayato did not turn red. For anything.

He wasn't lying when he said that Haru was a part of his Family. From the moment that the Tenth accepted her he had also, although begrudgingly, accepted her as well. But what Gokudera didn't realize was that somehow over the years she went from being the annoying girl who always tagged along to an actual friend that was a part of his Family.

So when she got hurt right before his eyes and he was powerless to do anything to help her, he naturally fell into a state of despair. He didn't just fail to protect his Family; he also failed in his duty to a friend and almost got her killed.

He heard Haru laugh a little. "If you say so," she said.

There was something resembling a sigh and finally, "I forgive you."

He turned and looked at her. Something within him, like a weight in the middle of his chest, seemed to dissolve away with those words. Somewhere in his mind, he knew that she would have forgiven him but hearing it was certainly more powerful. He was really glad that she did.

"Just don't let it happen again," she added. Although her tone was mocking, the smile that she had on her face was still bright and genuine. "Promise?"

In all honesty, he was glad that she was smiling like that, because it meant that she was okay. He never wanted to see her hurt like that again and since she was his Family, it was his duty to look out for her. If she was placing that much trust in him, then he had to trust himself too. He wasn't quite sure how she was doing that to him. There was something special about her, something worth finding out.

Gokudera nodded, not realizing that for the first time in several days, he was smiling himself. "Promise."


	7. Chapter 7: Dress

And I'm back after almost a full year of an unplanned hiatus. I admit that I've lost interest in KHR since the end of the future arc and the entirety of this current one but the idea of GokuHaru has yet to leave my mind. I also admit that reading your reviews have also encouraged me to continue what I've started so I'll try my best to follow through to the end.

Warning that this chapter is un-beta'd so I apologize for any mistakes. Did I mention how hard it was to write from Gokudera's POV?

Disclaimer: I do not own KHR.

Warning: Spoilers for Bakudan Bambino, the light novel about Gokudera's past. If you want to read it, please go here: http:/ knights-manga. and here: http:/ . com/26339. html. (Just make sure you delete the spaces!

**Dress- Second year of High School (September)**

"Haru-chan, are you sure you should carry that box? Wasn't your cast removed just a few weeks ago?"

Haru shook her head, pausing long enough to assure her classmate. "It's okay, Shizue-chan. It's not heavy."

Another classmate chimed in. "Put that down! One of the guys should be lifting that up for you!"

"They're all changing into their outfits," Shizue told her.

Another classmate squealed. "I can't wait to see them! Haru-chan did an amazing job on the pattern! We're sure to win the festival's best costume award!" Shizue nodded, admiring her own costume that Haru designed for their café.

Haru was really proud of herself. The girl's design was a play on the traditional maid outfit consisting of a full hunter green dress with a skirt that hung right over the knees. On top was a small white apron that covered the chest with straps that formed an elegant crisscross pattern in the back that met into a huge bow. It took her several days to make the pattern for the festival.

For their high school's annual festival, class 2-D decided to run a dessert café. The class went all out on design and decorating, even requesting that they have live music. Dividing up task was for the most part pretty easy. Haru took the lead on the design and creation the uniforms. The boys would take care of the building and decorating, while the rest of the girls took care of the food and drinks. However, the class was stuck on what to do for the music. Options were limited to a drummer, a clarinet player, and someone who played the xylophone, but none of those seemed appropriate for their café. Asking someone outside the class was out of the question.

Haru remembered how stumped the class was over what to do. It was too good of an idea to just let go and if they pulled through with it, they were all but guaranteed a good chance to win the grand prize (which was a class trip to Disneyland). It wasn't until two days after their initial class meeting that their solution came to them in the unlikeliest form. Everyone was surprised when Gokudera raised his hand to volunteer his musical talents. Haru didn't even know that he could play the piano and was impressed that he was willing to volunteer for such a big role.

"Oi, so what do I need to do?"

Although she still wasn't impressed with his attitude. She turned around and looked the right-hand man. "If you were here on time-"

"The festival doesn't start for another hour, so don't bother."

Haru sighed through her nostrils and willed herself some patience. "You need to change into this," she said, handing a bag of clothes to him.

He doubtingly looked at the bag. "This isn't one of your crazy costumes is it? Cause there's no way in hell I'm playing in a lobster costume."

"HAHI? Just go and get changed!" she snapped, pushing him out the door. As soon as she saw he was heading toward the dressing room, Haru turned back around only to have many of her classmates staring at her.

"You're amazing, Haru-chan," one of the girls said.

"What are you talking about?"

"You're the only one in the class who can talk to Gokudera-kun like that. He's really cute but he's so hard to talk to."

"He's scary too." Several others agreed.

"He's not that bad," Haru defended. She meant that too. Ever since the hospital visit, things had lightened up between them and they were growing as friends. However, even he was still difficult to deal with at times; it wouldn't be the same if he wasn't.

"He just takes some getting used to," she said with a smile.

oOoOoOo

Much to Gokudera's relief, he didn't have to play the piano in a lobster costume. Instead Haru prepared a simple outfit for him, consisting of maroon pants and a short vest paired with a white button down shirt. Haru even made him pull his hair back to look more professional.

It was weird to be playing in public again. The last time he had done so was for Carlo in that bar back in Italy, many years ago. While he practiced daily within his own home, he had rarely let anyone else listen to him. If it wasn't for the Tenth's encouragement and an annoying challenge from Yamamoto, he would have never volunteered.

Gokudera stared at the keys, willing himself to get over whatever bullshit that was going on inside his head. He wasn't a little kid anymore nor was he as confused and lost as he once was. Most of all he was strong, and in more ways than one.

He took a deep breath and pressed the first group of notes followed by the second and continued into the song. It wasn't so bad once he began to play. He'd always enjoyed playing the piano and before he could realized it, the song was over and the room was filled with applause. Slightly embarrassed, Gokudera quickly went into the next song.

It wasn't until after a couple of songs that he was interrupted.

"You play so wonderfully, I never would have guessed," Haru said, walking up to him.

Gokudera tried to look unimpressed. "Whatever."

Haru smiled, placing a cup of tea and snacks on a small table next to him. "Is everything okay?"

"Che. Everything's fine. Why are you asking?"

"You were hesitating and it looked like something was bothering you."

Gokudera's heartbeat quickened as he caught her eye. He didn't expect her to notice. "I- Don't worry about it," he said, turning his attention back to his music sheets.

"Are you sure?" she asked, sounding genuinely concerned.

"It's none of your business."

Haru winced a little but didn't snap back. "Fine. Let me know when you want to take your break," she told him before walking back to her post for the cafe.

As he began playing his next selection, he thought about what Haru said. He was still surprised that she noticed. Gokudera didn't think that he had made it so obvious but maybe it was because they were spending more time together. Since she was released from the hospital, he began taking the time to get to know her better. Nothing fancy, just actually making an effort to talk with her.

Gokudera looked up from the piano and found her seating new customers. He was impressed that she managed to design something that wasn't ridiculous. She even looked pretty good in it too.

The truth was that he no longer thought of Haru as obnoxious or troublesome. She was annoying at times, but it was tolerable. Gokudera discovered that the more he talked with her, the more interesting she seemed. She managed to challenge him in both wits and temperament and they were constantly bumping heads. But in an odd way he found that fun and endearing. Just like how he found her quirks and personality equally appealing. However, even if they were becoming friendlier with each other, there were a lot of things that Gokudera wasn't willing to share with Haru.

As Haru walked over to retrieve an order, she looked over towards him and met his eyes. She gave him a small smile, as if to say that she wasn't mad at him and would drop the earlier subject for now. Gokudera gave a brief nod in response and went back to the piano.

Well, maybe he would tell her later.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Happy Holidays!


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